Investments
India payments player Innoviti expands Series D to $22m
India-based financial technology start-up Innoviti Payment Solutions has doubled the size of its ongoing Series D round to more than INR 1.6bn (USD 22.5m). The overall target is USD 3bn.
China life sciences research business gets $300m Series C
MegaRobo Technologies, a China-based provider of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics-enabled research services to the life sciences industry, has raised USD 300m in Series C funding.
Vulcan leads $10.5m Series A for Singapore's Amili
Vulcan Capital, an investment vehicle established by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, has led a USD 10.5m Series A round for Singapore-based microbe analytics start-up Amili.
Pakistan B2B marketplace Dastgyr secures $37m Series A
Dastgyr, a Pakistan-based B2B e-commerce marketplace, has raised USD 37m in Series A funding led by Veon, an Amsterdam-listed telecom provider that owns Pakistan’s largest mobile network.
Japan's Aspirant buys beauty brand John Masters Organics
Japanese middle-market private equity firm Aspirant Group has agreed to acquire John Masters Organics (JMO), a personal care brand with a sizeable presence in East Asia, for an undisclosed sum.
Tencent, Block join Series B for Indonesia's Flip
Indonesian consumer payments platform Flip has upsized its Series B round to more than USD 100m with the addition of Tencent Holdings and Block – formerly Square – to the investor roster and re-up from Insight Partners.
India's 8i Ventures gets 36x return on M2P Fintech
Indian early-stage investor 8i Ventures has made a partial exit of its seed shares in local banking software supplier M2P Fintech, generating a 36x multiple and an IRR of 415% after two years.
Capital Today leads $100m round for China's Hai Robotics
Hai Robotics, a China-based warehouse robot company, has raised an extended Series D round of USD100m led by Capital Today China Group.
Deal focus: Hahn finds rich pickings in SK Group
Hahn & Company’s USD 1.3bn acquisition of an industrial materials unit from SKC is its fifth deal involving SK Group in four years. Being a good custodian is regarded as key to securing repeat business
Crypto: Something for everyone?
Traditional VCs are becoming more active in Asia’s blockchain and web3 space, despite structural and philosophical obstacles to participation. Can they withstand the crypto winter?
Deal focus: Singapore biotech start-up generates US buzz
Singapore’s Tessa Therapeutics has developed a cancer drug that appears to be twice as effective as other treatments in its class. It has raised USD 126m with eyes on a near-term US IPO
Deal focus: VCs back steppingstones to immortality
Japan’s Alt is quicky commercialising a suite of learning voice recognition products as part of a plan to capture individuals’ personalities and values in a process it calls digital cloning
China edge cloud computing provider raises $38m
Shanghai-based distributed cloud computing company PPIO has raised nearly CNY 250m (USD 37.6m) in Series A funding led by Panlin Capital, China Creation Ventures, Shanghai Zhangjiang Technology Venture Investment, and IMO Ventures.
India payments player Kissht closes $80m Series E
Indian payments start-up Kissht has raised a USD 80m Series E round led by Temasek Holdings-owned Vertex Ventures and Brunei Investment Agency.
Singapore cancer treatment start-up gets $126m Series A
Singapore’s Tessa Therapeutics, a biotech developer with a Hodgkin's lymphoma treatment in phase-two trials, has raised a USD 126m Series A round led by US healthcare specialist Polaris Partners.
Med-Fine leads Series A for China's Degron Therapeutics
US and China-based biotech player Degron Therapeutics has closed a USD 22m Series A round led by Med-Fine Capital.
India beauty e-commerce player Purplle achieves unicorn status
India-focused beauty e-commerce platform Purplle has raised USD 33m in funding at a valuation of USD 1.1bn – nearly twice what it was worth about seven months ago.
Japan personal 'clone' AI start-up gets $26m
Japan’s Alt, an artificial intelligence (AI) developer that personalises deep learning systems to make what it calls digital clones of people, has raised a JPY 3.5b (USD 26m) round featuring Vertex Ventures.
China's Insilico Medicine gets $60m Series D
Insilico Medicine, a China-based artificial intelligence (AI)-driven drug discovery company, has raised a USD 60 million Series D round.
Sequoia China leads $210m Series A for Envision Digital
Sequoia Capital China has led a USD 210m Series A round for Envision Digital, a Singapore-based technology developer focused on helping organisations achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.
India edtech start-up gets unicorn status on Series A
PhysicsWallah, an India-based online education platform focused on engineering and medicine, has achieved unicorn status at the Series A stage after raising USD 100m at a post-deal valuation of USD 1.1bn.
China machine vision company AlpsenTek raises $30m
Chinese machine vision developer AlpsenTek has raised a CNY 200m (USD 30m) Series A round led by Xunxing Investment, an arm of mobile brand Oppo, and Cowin Capital.
Japan's Luca Science secures $30m Series B
Luca Science, a Japanese biotech start-up focused on dysfunctional and damaged tissues and organs, has raised a USD 30.3m Series B round led by life sciences specialists 4BIO Capital and DCI Partners.
China autonomous driving player Minieye raises $120m
Chinese autonomous driving solutions provider Minieye has raised CNY 800m (USD 120m) in Series D funding across three tranches. The third tranche was led by Cathay Capital.